Elsword: The Lost and The Damned
by EatMyRunez
Summary: A darker spin on Elsword Sieghart. He's worked all kinds of jobs, was abandoned at a young age, can murder without batting an eye, has been tortured for days at a time, and has lost much he held dear to him- it's a wonder he's still sane(mostly). Find out where his dark past and heavy heart take him, and if the Elgang has any hope of restoring his long gone joy.
1. Chapter 1

**So... Sup. Name's Elsword. For you to even be reading this, you already know the story, 13 year old swordsman-in-training on a search for his sister yadda yadda yadda. I may have the same backstory as that other original 'me' but when it comes to just about everything else, we're nothing alike. I would list the many many differences between him and I, but this intro(kinda sorta) is beginning to drag out, so I'll leave that among many other things for you to find out later on. So, enjoy the ki- I mean, story... I guess? Never really bothered to learn how this crap works, so...**

 **Meh.**

 **(LineBreak)**

 **"So this is Lake Noahs, huh?" What a joke. Stories of 'fearsome monsters' and 'mischievous master thieves' were all I heard when it came to rumors of this place. From what I could tell, it was beautiful, lush, green, open, sunny, perfect for a family picnic really.**

 **Heh... 'Family.'**

 **Looking ahead, I saw dozens of Phoru and further ahead, Bor, littering the path that led to Elder. It made sense for them to be concentrated over there, since it was the only human settlement in the general vicinity other than Ruben since the El was scattered. It was easy pickings for them.**

 **Little did they know that they were doing the same to themselves for me.**

 **Letting a smirk make its way onto my face, I began my walk along the trail. I'm not even going to go into detail about the next events. All you need to know is that it was a one-sided massacre where they died and I Iaughed. I simply through the blood off of my sword with a single stroke and continued on until two girls confronted me.**

 **One of them was a short girl with purple pig tails. A student Mage judging by her clothing and staff. The other was an elf. I could tell by the sheer brightness of her hair that she was among the purest and the strongest. That purity could be her downfall in this world though, despite her prowess. Plus, unlike her companion, her eyes held a promising amount of experience and wisdom. They lived thousands of times longer than humans so it was to be expected. They were an interesting duo but they were blocking my path and thus wasting my time. Not only was I searching for my sister, but I'd taken on the same mission as her: retrieve the El scattered around Elrios. It was very time-sensitive so the human barricade in front of me was annoying me greatly.**

 **"What do you want?" I asked curtly. The purple haired girl confidently sauntered forward with an angry look on her face. Great.**

 **"What was up with that?" She yelled. Ok, so she couldn't even detail the source of her getting angry with a complete stranger. That's inconvenient: immature people like that are always near impossible to reason with, let alone placate.**

 **"Listen, kid. You're wasting time, and that's invaluable in the crisis of Elrios. Now either you give me a decent reason to waste any more of it talking to unreasonable strangers or I cut both of you down like one of those Phoru and continue with my day." I stated darkly while slowly crouching into a loose stance with my back slightly hunched over and my hands down on either side of me. Vitality. Elves are notoriously nimble and teleportation is among the first techniques taught to mages. Plus, I was outnumbered. Speed was definitely the way to go for this scenario if we were to fight.**

 **The Elf dismissively waved off her companion's indignant stammering and walked forwards with her hands held up in a disarming manner. I didn't drop my stance.**

 **"Sorry, my friend is very stubborn and passionate about things she doesn't agree with- in this case, your slaughtering of those, and I quote: 'absolutely adorable animals.' I understand why you did what you did and I want to invite you to the El Search Party." She explained nicely. I nodded my understanding and sheathed my sword, sparing her a smile. Ignoring the shorty's protests, I walked up to the elf.**

 **"I'm in. Name's Elsword. What you and the kid's names?"**

 **" Who's the kid!? I'm older than you!" She yelled, harshly reminding me of her existence.**

 **"Hm?" I challenged. "Last time I checked teenagers were older than toddlers..." I stated with sharp sarcasm. Surprisingly, a confident smirk appeared on her face.**

 **"Hah! I'm 15! In your face, brat!" She yelled while pointing an accusing finger at me. I stared silently for a while and then turned to Rena.**

 **"...Is she premature?" I asked hesitantly. There's no way a 15 year old girl could be so doubly small...**

 **With a sigh, Rena answered me with mild exasperation.**

 **"Why does everyone keep asking that...?" She said more to herself than to me. We both laughed at that. Next thing I knew a fireball was coming my way. Instinctively shooting my hand out to absorb it, I turned to her with a murderous glare.**

 **"What the hell do you think you're doing, Grape?" I managed through gritted teeth. Her expression(which was already changing to one of shock due to my unexpected absorption) faltered, but she futilely tried to keep up a tough front.**

 **"What am I doing? What are YOU doing calling me prem-" she was cut off by the tip of my blade being pushed against her neck.**

 **"Don't misunderstand me, you spoiled brat. I've only joined you because it benefits me. I hold no emotional attachment to you whatsoever and if I deem you traitorous or a burden, I. Will. Kill. You. Clear?" She answered me with a shaky 'yes' and I removed my blade. She slipped down to her knees in a nervous heap.**

 **"Good." I was about to sheathe my sword when I sensed a small killer's intent. Turning to the source, I saw the elf who had her bow pointed at me and her eyes narrowed. I walked over to her with a judging look.**

 **"You care about your friend even though she is in the wrong and show a distaste in killing. Your kindness is admirable... A warning, that kind of attachment in excess will make life in the current Elrios, especially the front lines, exponentially more difficult. I suggest reigning it in for now until you have the strength and jurisdiction to share it without consequence." She contemplated my words before putting away her weapon. I did the same and helped the student Mage up. She seemed both hesitant and afraid to resist. We continued to the gate of elder in what would be, to most people, an awkward silence. I didn't mind it, but a thought suddenly came to mind.**

 **"You know, I never got your names." I said thoughtfully.**

 **"Rena." She somewhat spat.**

 **"A-Aisha." She answered hesitantly. I sighed. She was too distraught to battle efficiently so I decided to try cheer her up a little. Good thing I learned how to lie flawlessly in my travels.**

 **" Hey, Gr- Aisha." I called out while putting a hand on her shoulder. She jerked and looked to me slowly. I was still mentally reeling from how quick she went from a complete braggart to a scared little child.**

 **"Sorry 'bout earlier. I went too far. I'm a little impulsive and prone to violence. I can't explain now, but maybe later on you'll know why, when I tell you about the darker parts of my past. But for now, I just want you to know I take back what I said. " I finished. She nodded after staring blankly at me for god knows how long. I shot her a grin and slung my arm over both of their shoulders while striking up a conversation about funny stories of my childhood, how I beat Lowe(sorry, forgot to tell ya guys that), and what I knew about Elder.**

 **Both she and Rena loosened their shoulders and if I didn't know any better, I'd say I saw a small smile creep onto their faces.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Upon reaching Elder, Rena introduced us to the village's leader: Hoffman.**

 **"Get out! It's because of you damn fighters that those phoru are no longer peaceful! We don't need you making things worse!" Hoffman all but screamed at us upon entry.**

 **"No, our biggest suspects are in this section of Elrios. They're our next clue to getting our hands on the stolen El." I said firmly with my arms crossed. That was when a certain purplenette jumped in.**

 **"Yeah! We're working real hard to get the El back and save Elrios and this is how you treat us!?" She returned his animosity towards ten-fold. Rena, who had been trying to please and kiss up to him for the past half an hour, had just given up and waited in a corner behind me.**

 **"I don't care! You're mere PRESENCE is causing our village to suffer famine, casualties, and lack of resources! And you-"**

 **"Then tell me the source of your problems and we'll remove them." I cut him off.**

 **"I know that the only reason these Phoru are stealing and attacking is because of their neglect of help from you guys."**

 **"But we don't and never have owned the food nor resources to do that! We made that clear in a tru-"**

 **"And they've taken that like this: 'It's either you or us, so tough luck.' They know they aren't getting any help or sympathy from you villagers who are hogging up all the food and resources. And with them being too weak to best humans in combat- or anything for that matter- one- on-one, they resort to stealing. Our leaving won't fix that." I finished my explanation with a smirk that caused Hoffman to gulp audibly. I walked him down and put an arm to a wall next to his head.**

 **"You need to get rid of an infestation, THEY need a lodging to help save Elrios. We can all benefit from helping each other out. You can ensure that your villagers will leave to see the day when Elrios is restored, and you'll be hailed for having a crucial role in its restoration. C'mon, Hoffman, all we need is a place to eat and sleep. We'll even pay normally, eh? Way I see it, you've got everything to gain." I said with an obviously double-edged grin and pat on his shoulder. Hoffman gulped again and croaked out:**

 **"...N-name your terms..." He managed(barely). At this, I swear I could hear Rena and Aisha's jaws hit the floor with a sound reminiscent of a Mario-style ground pound.**

 **ooo**

 **In the end, I'd agreed to get rid of William Phoru, the one who rallied the Phoru thieves. After that, we're allowed a week to look for the El thief and famous bandit, Banthus. Then, we're to get rid of the oppressive king Wally, who just so happens to be my prime suspect for finding the El. Currently, we're being introduced to people that Hoffman believed could be of use.**

 **"Meet Lenphad, our best blacksmith. He can fix and repair anythi-"**

 **"Oh my, look at that sword! Please allow me to replace that for you-" Lenphad interrupted him. I couldn't blame him for blurting out like that; anyone who's used a sword for more than a month would gag at its current state. But...**

 **"No, I need this sword!" I yelled. Too quickly, I realized, to NOT gain suspicion. However, I'd already let it slip as all heads turned to me.**

 **"I've never seen you so panicky before, Elsword. What's the big deal?" Rena asked with Aisha crossing her arms and narrowing her eyes at me, as if daring me to even try to get out of this one. I sighed.**

 **"Well, that cat's out of the bag... This sword is special in that it acts as a suppressor of sorts." I told them, my tone slightly lower through habit at the topic. I could only hope they didn't pick up on that.**

 **"... That's it?" Aisha asked incredulously with a scowl, and Rena nodded her agreement. Losing my usual cool all but growled at them.**

 **"That's the most I've ever told anyone and I intend to keep it that way, now drop it." I almost regretted it when I saw them recoil as if I just slapped them.**

 **Almost.**

 **"That is no way to talk to ladies!" Lenphad roared, putting a hand on my shoulder and sneering down at me, making it a point to show off our height difference for intimidation. He was goading me, but I knew better than to bite.**

 **"Hmph." That was the only response he got before I brushed him off, and had Hoffman lead us to the next important & skilled figure of Elder. Judging by his shaky knees and wide eyes, he must've been surprised at me simply ignoring Lenphad, meaning he was most likely among the most feared, powerful, and/or skilled in combat.**

 **From there on, we visited an alchemist by the name of Echo, as well as a former criminal-turned shop owner Luichel. I didn't even bother interacting with Echo since using something as powerful as El(especially because my bloodline can already control El) to add to my suppressor. On a side note, Echo hit it off with the others due to their shared interest in magic & science, as well as Rena's maternal instincts going ham once she saw Echo's childish personality, height, and look. Luichel shared the same wizened motherly aura that Rena possessed, so that visit really turned into constant reminiscing among those two... Followed by them using Aisha as a Barbie doll. **

**All fooling aside, the conversation took an... interesting turn once she shared some general Phoru experiences and asked me just to get a letter of apology from the 'misguided' William Phoru:**

 **"Um, about that, I kind of... already killed him." I mentioned uncomfortably, seeing how passionate the girls were getting about bringing him back.**

 **The shop was silent for a second...**

 **"WHAT!?" They resounded loud enough for all of Ruben to be able to hear. After taking a breath, they opened their mouths to talk, but I stopped them with a raised hand.**

 **"I'd gone on a killing spree when the various hostiles of Lake Noahs tried to attack, including-and mainly consisting of- Phoru. That had apparently gotten me on their 'To Kill' list, so William, along with hundreds of others, attacked while the three of us were camping-" I was interrupted.**

 **"But then we would've heard that!" Aisha yelled in disbelief. I patiently waited.**

 **"... You done? Ok, so I killed all of them through the use of silent assassination. That was one of the many things I picked up throughout my travels: at one point it was part of my lifestyle. They must've heard of my willingness to kill you two-" Aisha and Rena cringed "and thus decided that I must've not cared enough about you to yield should you have been used as hostages. That was what allowed to take my time gutting them one by one-" I started to chuckle at the memory, causing fearful and disgusted looks to crawl upon the women's faces.. After enough killing, I became desensitized and it was soon nothing more than a game, a sport, to me.**

 **The only exception being when it was being used to reach my goals.**

 **"S-sorry, sorry. So yeah, he's been dead for awhile and as for the reason you didn't smell their corpses or blood, I have... Things... That specifically coat the smell of death for days at a time. One of many tools I's gained during my time as an assassin." Luichel was looking down, clearly trying to process the sudden reveal. Aisha was dead silent, refusing to make eye contact and subtly shaking. Good, it was about time she remembered my nature, after all. Rena, on the other hand, had a finger under her chin while she was in deep thought.**

 **Just for shits and giggles, I decided to rub salt on the wound.**

 **"You don't believe me, do you?" Aisha was the quickest to answer, though the others did perk fairly quickly.**

 **"No, w-"**

 **"No? In that case, I'll prove it." Before they could even say anything, I reached into my bag and pulled out William's decapitated head.**

 **"This is my proof." I said, just barely maintaining character. Meanwhile, Aisha hurled in the bathroom, Rena recoiled and turned away, and Luichel crunched her face up in disgust. At this point I laughed.**

 **I didn't chuckle.**

 **I didn't snort.**

 **I laughed. Genuinely.**

 **"You're sick." Luichel said before leaving to god-knows-where and I just laughed harder until I was rolling on the floor speaking in incomplete falsetto. I'm sorry, but the expressions were priceless. Maybe I'm a bit broken, but with the way I lived, if you didn't find pleasure from twisted things in my shoes, you'd have committed suicide.**

 **And I sure as hell wasn't taking that second option.**

 **"O-ok, I'm done. G-games as-side... This was how I was so confident with my negotiation with Hoffman. This will earn us about another week to take Banthus, whom I've already found the location of, out. In short-**

 **"Our ratio of efficiency to allotted time is much higher than you let on!" Rena finished with a cringed smile. Yeah, Williams's wide eyes weren't gonna leave anyone's head for a while. Aisha, seemingly recovered, decided to pitch in.**

 **"Then why'd you wait? To take on hundreds and be totally fine... you must be plenty strong. Why not just assassinate Banthus?" Aisha asked. I turned.**

 **"I could've done that, but I was thinking it'd be a great source of experience for you guys to come. I need to make sure you guys can at least amount to Banthus, whom used to be tied with Lowe in his early days, before we search for El. As you are right now, you'd be nothing but cannon fodder if we went up against some of the more sinister forces at work."**

 **"How would YOU know? You've never even seen us fight!" Aisha all but screamed at me.**

 **"Yes, I know I'm not necessarily as powerful as you, but it is a bit unfair to judge us prematurely." Rena added her two cents.**

 **"For one thing, I can tell by your mana flow and equipment that you're a Mage, Aisha. I know you lost your power and all, but that isn't an excuse when murderers are trying to kill you. As someone who specializes in magic, your mana capacity is garbage. At most, you could barely manage a decent gust screw- which the people I met would just shrug off- before being wasted. And you, Rena, are old and experienced. However, your age and combat ability aren't anywhere near proportional, so it's obvious that you have only very sparsely been through real combat or intense training, otherwise someone who more than ten times younger wouldn't outclass you. In short, you both are wet behind the ears and inadequate candidates to get the el back in your current forms. Consider Banthus your first step in your training." I finished in a cold monotone, showing that I was dead serious. Rena contemplated my words for a second before standing up and nodding her head determinedly.**

 **"I'm in. You've made clear the difference in power between us all and if these people are as powerful as you say, I'll take your word for it." Rena said. I sent a smile at her. Aisha seemed to be struggling to get past the blow to her pride, which I understood, since she herself most likely never seen how strong some of the people in this world can be. Which is why, as her partner, I have to condition her in mind and body to make her usable.**

 **With that in mind, I walked over and placed a hand on her head.**

 **"Aisha, I'm not denying your skill, and I know it hurts your pride, but I'm asking you to swallow it just this once. I've seen the level these monsters, demons or humans, can be at. I used to be just like you, confident and unknowing. My wake up calls were some of the most traumatizing, fatal moments of my life. To this day, it's a wonder I haven't died or gone completely insane. Because of what I've gone through, I want to help make you strong enough to never experience that kind of pain. Will you work with me Aisha?" I finished as I reached my hand to her. A convincing act if I do say so myself. Wait. Is s... Is she blushing!? God this little girl wouldn't last two seconds in the real world...**

 **"Ok. It must've been hard to take that trip down memory lane to convince me, so I'm sorry and thanks, Elsword." She said as she grabbed my hand. With both Aisha and Rena in hand, I walked outside of the shop.**

 **"Alright, Elgang! It's time to relax!" I all but cheered once outside. Ignoring the shocked and confused looks on their faces, I headed to the inn.**

 **ooo**

 **"Oooookay, time for some bonding!" Rena said cheerfully as she clapped her hands together. We were all in the middle of dinner when she suddenly proposed the idea. Hmm, I'll play along with whatever she suggests.**

 **As long as it doesn't include my past.**

 **"What do you suggest, mother?" I teased, getting a mild pour from Rena before she continued.**

 **"Oh shut it, Elsword... We're gonna be telling each other about our pasts!" She said with a bright smile. Aisha nodded her agreement while I was inwardly panicking.**

 **"No. I'd rather not go down that road." I stated with my usual tone, not giving way to my distress. They frowned at me.**

 **"Elsword, all of us have to, otherwise there's no point!" Rena scolded. Did she think that because we're inside that she can tell me off like some child!?**

 **"Yeah, Els! Besides, you were the first to agree a second ago! Isn't it rude to get your partners' hopes up?" Aisha too!?**

 **"I. Said. No. Drop it now." I managed through gritted teeth. I was far past annoyed now. I was furious with their prying, mostly because of the memories it brought up. How much I suffered, those around me suffered... How much I'd been to powerless to protect...**

 **"Oh come on, Els-" I lost it.**

 **"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" I roared, blue burning flames sprouting out of oblivion to bend at my will. Fortunately, I just barely managed to keep them from expanding past the very outline of my skin. Burning down the inn on the first day wouldn't be a good look.**

 **"Never, EVER call me that again! Damn, it still hurts..." I muttered that last part, forgetting about elves' hearing ability until Rena's ears perked up followed by a concerned look in my direction. Aisha, despite not hearing that last part, looked... hurt. Like someone just ripped her heart out.**

 **That look reminded me too much of the many times I'd worn that same expression, and I... I just couldn't bare to maintain eye contact with it lest I breakdown in front of them.**

 **So I left.**


End file.
